Video Tour: HTC Hero

Phone Scoop takes a hands-on look at the new HTC Hero Android phone for Sprint in this video. The hardware feels great and HTC's Sense UI allows for lots of personalization of the phone.

HTC is bringing Android to Sprint in the form of the Hero. This CDMA variant of the device launched several months ago is a monoblock device that feels great in the hand. It is light weight, comfortable to hold, and all the controls work well. In fact, it has some of the best buttons I've seen on an Android handset yet. I am very happy to report that the Hero comes with a 3.5mm headset jack, which fits most stereo headphones, though it was somewhat annoying to have to take off the battery cover to get at the microSD slot. In all, the hardware feels great. The Hero is a bigger phone when compared to the myTouch 3G, but the increased screen real estate and improved 5 megapixel camera certainly offset the larger footprint.

As far as the software is concerned, the Hero runs the custom-built SenseUI from HTC. SenseUI is meant to help end users personalize their phones and access the apps and content they want as quickly as possible. There are seven different home screens for end users to take advantage of. These screens can hold apps, links, bookmarks, widgets and more. SenseUI on the CDMA version of the Hero is definitely more responsive than the GSM version and works smoothly.

The Hero is pre-loaded with a number of Sprint services, such as its NASCAR and NFL content, as well as Sprint TV. It has a capable music player, rich web browser, and ready access to thousands of applications through the Android Market.

There's a lot to take in with this phone. The good news is, it will get even better, as Google recently announced Android 1.6 'Donut". Android 1.6 will bring new features to the Android platform that are sure to make end users happy. Out of the box, the Hero runs Android 1.5.